Born into a Montreal Jewish family in 1924,
Richard Goldbloom was always sensitive to minorities and at ease with
difference. Jewish and Christian, French and English, music, theatre, and the
arts in all forms were prevalent and valued in the family home. He became a
skilled pianist and a gifted storyteller. Richard trained in medicine with his
father and at McGill University then specialized in pediatrics at Harvard
with the famous Charles A. Janeway at Boston Children’s Hospital.

He met the vivacious, intrepid Ruth
Schwartz at McGill when they both auditioned for a play. Also Jewish, she hailed
from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. They married in 1945 before his studies
were complete and had three children. Unlike many male physicians of his era, Richard
was in awe of this tiny dynamo and attributes his happiness and success to her.

In 1967, the family moved to Halifax, Nova
Scotia, where Richard became Professor of Pediatrics, Physician in Chief and
director of research at the new children’s hospital. Ruth was instrumental in a
wide array of philanthropic endeavors that inevitably involved her husband. She
developed a remarkable museum at Pier 21, the point of arrival for generations
of immigrants to Canada—a place to gather their stories and their achievements.

Many anecdotes about clinical practice and
scientific innovations are told with accessible enthusiasm and gentle humor. He
dispels myths, exposes hidden agendas and explains with clear examples the
importance of listening to children and their parents. Underlying the entire
narrative is a refreshing humility and gratitude for his “lucky life.”